Wasurenagusa: Everlasting
by Monotague
Summary: As Itachi and Ino's children try to live up to the legacy of their parents, they have to realize that not everyone is so accepting of their children even if their father was a hero. Enter their lives as they attempt to meet the expectations of everyone in their life. Happiness, goodness, and the plum blossom.
1. Yamafuji: beautiful birth

**Disclaimer: Naruto rightfully belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. Anything you recognize is not mine.**

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><p><strong>Yamafuji (Wild Wisteria): beautiful birth<strong>

"I'm sorry," she sobbed, "I'm sorry." The smell of flowers in the house almost over powered the stench of copper in the air. Almost. It seemed as if the Uchiha prodigy was going to die tonight. She turned around and watched the house in the distance burst into black flames. "Itachi!" she screamed in the tall grass on the hill. All she wanted to do was sit down and cry, but she couldn't. She had to get to Konoha. With that thought, she ran into the forest.

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><p>Their home was in the Fire Country, carefully concealed in a valley surrounded by trees-close enough to Konoha for emergencies, but far away enough to keep intruding eyes out. She didn't know how Sasuke found them, it had been two years since Itachi 'mysteriously' disappeared from the Akatsuki; most thought he was dead, but select few had known he had gone into hiding, retiring his life of a ninja and became a doctor.<p>

After an hour of running, she finally saw the large fire kanji of Konoha. She leaned against a tree, taking deep breaths.

"Who's there?"

_Izumo._

"Izumo? Is that you?" She moved into the light of the moon. He stared at her.

"B-but you're dead. Is that really you?"

"Yes, it really is-" She screamed in pain, clutching at her swollen stomach. Izumo rushed over to help her. "The b-baby! It's too soon, I've still got a month left-" She let out another scream. "T-tsunade! I need her! Please, Izumo." Without another thought, Izumo hooked his arm under her knees and sped to the Hokage Tower.

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><p>Screams could be heard through the delivery room.<p>

"Just a bit more! You're already crowning!" Tsunade shouted at her former pupil. A cry filled the room and the mother slumped back in relief, but her rest was short before another contraption hit her. Her recent memory of Itachi discussing the baby with her filled her mind.

_"But what if I have twins?" she asked him._

_"Then I'll make another crib or buy one from town," he replied lacing his pale hands with her dirt covered ones._

"Almost there!" Tsunade reassured her.

_"What if we don't have enough room in the house?"_

_"Then I'll add another section," he responded tucking a wisp of her hair behind her ear. Her eyebrows furrowed in worry._

The two boys were expected considering the size of her belly, but the third was not. By that time, her face was already pale with exhaustion. She grabbed Shikamaru's shirt. "S-shikamaru," her face was covered in sweat, hair sticking to her face, "I'm not...going to...make it..." His eyes widened in surprise.

"W-what do you mean? You always make it, you have to! We haven't seen you in two years and if you think we're going to let you go again, then you must be out of your mind!"

"Shikamaru..." she beckoned for him to come closer. With shaking hands, she touched the center of his forehead. "For my children..."

_"What if you...die? Or I die?" He gripped her hands tighter._

_"That won't happen, you're strong and Sasuke would have a hard time even finding trails of us."_

_"I'm afraid." He enveloped her in his hands, the bump keeping them apart._

_"Fear is what makes us human. It is alright to be afraid. I'll keep you and our children safe-I promise."_

At last, she gave life to her final legacy.

"Hiroyuki," she said at her first son, "Masayoshi," she said at her second son and to the smallest of her children, she whispered, "Umeko."

Her last moments were spent next to the three bassinets and surrounded by her old friends.

"How troublesome," she muttered, taking the words right out of Shikamaru's mouth. Her eyelids fluttered before her body went limp. Sakura immediately started shaking her body. _'Koi, wait for me.'_

"Ino? Ino!" Sakura yelled frantically, green chakra already shooting out of her hands. "Ino-pig, this isn't funny! Wake up already! Don't die on me! You still haven't gotten me back for Sasuke-kun yet. You can't die already!"

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><p><strong>Hiroyuki: widespread happiness<strong>

**Masayoshi: flourishing goodness**

**Umeko: plum blossom**

**koi: love**

**A/N For those who didn't get it, when Ino touched Shikamaru's forehead, she was transferring memories into his head. Wasurengusa is Japanese for forget-me-not's; in hanakotoba (Japanese flower arrangement) it means everlasting/true love**


	2. Asagao: I will keep my promise

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto: it rightfully belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. Anything you recognize is not mine.**

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><p><strong>Asagao (Morning Glory): I will keep my promise<strong>

Shikamaru brushed the soot and dirt off the ground, the black sticking to his hand, the marble cold under his hand, fire still in the air... What was left of Itachi's disintegrated body had already been carried off. He wiggled his kunai under the slab of marble, loosening the soil before lifting the piece and placing it next to him as silently as possible. He stared at all that was inside: scrolls, letters, books, pictures... He picked up the large box and put the marble slab over it before running back to Konoha.

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><p>Each and every one of them threw wreaths of violets and white carnations into their grave as pile after pile of soil was pushed into their grave. They all stared at the three children-two perfect copies of Itachi Uchiha and a replica of Ino. If Ino only had the trademark Uchiha eyes and skin pale as death. When people had come to pay their respects, they stared at the two older children with disdain and they would look at the youngest with sympathy. Until she opened her eyes and they would stare at her with as much prejudice as her elder siblings.<p>

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><p>Itachi and Ino had left as much for their children as they could: most of the Uchiha compound, Ino's Yamanaka inheritance, their short happy memories... But no matter how many good things that their parents had done for the village-the entire Fire Country, it would not be enough to push away the prejudice, the hate for Itachi because he slaughtered his own family, the hate at Ino for producing children of a murderer, and anything else they could find to go against the couple because they were human and did not like to know that what they saw as the 'truth' all along was not true at all-they always wanted to be right.<p>

Shikamaru would take one look at them everyday and it just hurt. He felt bruised because they would never be known as the children of the great Ino Yamanaka, but the children of the murderer Itachi Uchiha who slaughtered the entire Uchiha Clan in a single night leaving only his younger brother alive.

When anyone of them cried, Shikamaru or Temari would rock them until they fell asleep.

When they wouldn't eat, Choji would come over and feed them.

When anyone of them even sneezed, Sakura would come rushing over.

Hinata and Neji would tell them the glory and love story of their parents.

Lee would shower them with his youthfulness.

Kiba and Akamaru would smother them in puppy love.

Shino would teach them the beauty of insects.

Tenten taught them to hold a kunai before Naruto could teach them how to use chopsticks to eat ramen.

Whenever Gaara or Kankuro got around to going to Konoha, they were disciplined in the mind and body.

If they were all unavailable, Tsunade would tell them about the secrets of healing even if they were too young, or when nobody noticed, Kakashi would read them Icha Icha and corrupting their innocent little minds.

And like an unspoken promise between all of them, they raised the triplets the best they could to embody the forget-me-not as a show of their parent's love.

"_I'll keep you and our children safe-I promise."_

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><p><strong>Violet: Honestyplease love me. Ino was raised to embody the violet**

**White carnation: Our love endures**

**A/N I was going to put down that water ninja killed Itachi, but then I went, oh wait, Sasuke kills Itachi!**


	3. Shiragiku: truth

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto. Belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. Anything you recognize is not mine.

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><p><strong>Shiragiku: Truth (White Chrysanthemum): Truth<strong>

Sometimes Umeko wondered why she didn't look like Baki or Kaede. Sure, she looked like Hiroyuki and Masayoshi and she kinda looked like Shikamaru, but sometimes, she _really _did wonder why she didn't look like Temari. Or Choji. Or Ino. Or Naruto, Neji, Hinata, Tenten, Kiba, Shino, and occasionally, Kakashi or Tsunade. Hmm... She also wondered why some of her classmates wouldn't stop staring at her. Just like right now in Iruka sensei's class. She glanced at the seat next to her that was usually occupied by Masayoshi, but sat empty today. Hiroyuki had disappeared a little earlier and with no one to comfort her, but her thoughts, she felt empty. It was five minutes before they broke for lunch, making time seem slower than ever. She wished that wherever Hiroyuki was, she was with him.

"Umeko, what is the fourth Shinobi Rule?" Upon hearing her name, she looked up and stared to get flustered.

"I-I...um...-" her excuse of trying to tell why she didn't know the fourth Shinobi Rule that they learned yesterday was cut off by Hiroyuki bursting in. Even from here, she could see Iruka sensei's tick in his forehead start to throb.

"And where have _you _been?" he shouted at a brightly beaming Hiroyuki.

"Eating ramen with Naruto oji-san. Ne, sensei, are you jealous?" Iruka sucked in a breath and his eyes twinkled and he looked around the room, thinking of an excuse to go see Naruto.

"Uh, lunch break!" he shouted before running out of the Academy. Students started to get out of their seats and Umeko tried her best to get to Hiroyuki, but by the time she got down the elevated rows of seats, he was already gone.

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><p>Hiroyuki really did feel guilty about leaving Umeko alone to have lunch, honestly, but it was like he was going to miss anything. Umeko could fend for herself for just one day. Right? He stopped in his tracks. His meeting with Gaara oji-san could wait. He grit his teeth at the thought of those three even getting close to his younger sister. He turned and ran back to the academy. How could he be so stupid?<p>

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><p>The swing rocked slowly back and forth as she thought with anguish the way that Hiroyuki just left like that. What kind of brother was he!<p>

"Lookey what we have here. It's the murderer's daughter." Umeko stopped swinging and looked up from her lunch box to see Akio Fujimoto and the two boys that were always with him. She was confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't act like you don't know anything," he spat, "You're probably plotting to murder everyone here, just like your father."

"Shikamru wouldn't kill anyone," and right after she said it, she knew it was a lie. His facial expressions went from surprised to a vicious, joyful glee.

"You really _don't_ know. Your father was Itachi Uchiha and he murdered his entire clan in a single night. You're the murderer's daughter. Well, how do you feel? Your father murdered all those people which makes _you _a murderer. Murderer!" He pointed at her as he shouted this, getting his friends to join in. The bento dropped from her lap as she covered her ears. They were lying, right? Right?!

"_Get away from my sister, you bastards!" _Akio was on the ground, convulsing and there was Hiroyuki standing there except... His eyes were red. As red as the time she accidentally cut herself with a kunai. Gorou and Junichi stepped back away from him. But it was too late as they, too were already on the ground, a haunted look in their eyes.

"_They're lying, right?" _she whispered, pulling her knees close.

"No."


End file.
